LibraryReads: March 2026

      

 It's LibraryReads day and that means four things here on RA for All

1. I post the list and tag it “Library Reads” so that you can easily pull up every single list with one click.
2. I can remind you that even though the newest list is always fun to see, it is the older lists where you can find AWESOME, sure bet suggestions for patrons that will be on your shelf to actually hand to them right now. The best thing about LibraryReads is the compound interest it is earning. We now have hundreds and hundreds of titles worth suggesting right at our fingertips through this archive OR the sortable master list allowing you to mix and match however you want.
3. You have no excuse not to hand sell any LibraryReads titles because there is a book talk right there in the list in the form of the annotation one of your colleagues wrote for you. All you have to say to your patron is, “such and such library worker in blank state thought this was a great read,” and then you read what he or she said.
4. Every upcoming book now has at least 1 readalike that is available to hand out RIGHT NOW. Book talk the upcoming book, place a hold for it, and then hand out that readalike title for while they wait. If they need more titles before their hold comes in, use the readalike title to identify more readalike titles. And then keep repeating. Seriously, it is that easy to have happy, satisfied readers.

So get out there and suggest a good read to someone today. I don’t care what list or resource you use to find the suggestion, just start suggesting books.

Please remember to click here for everything you need to know about how to participate. 

And finally, here is LibraryReads' extremely helpful Resources page.

Now let's get to the March 2026 list.... 

No Matter What: A Novel

Cara Bastone

(Dial Press Trade Paperbacks)

Roz and Vin have been married 8 years, but a terrible accident ripped their lives apart and left them  reeling. This story is their slow journey back to one another. No tropes here—this romance is quiet and ordinary, and in that it's so powerful. It's a beautiful exploration of how even the strongest relationship can fracture, and how we repair and recover from damage. It's also a love letter to drawing and art, to storytelling and friendships, to how we care for and harm each other.

—Nyssa Fleig, Salt Lake County Library, UT

NoveList read-alike: L eft of F orever by Tara DeWitt

Now the rest of the list...

The Secrets Lives of Murderers' Wives 
Elizabeth Arnott
(Berkley)

Three wives of convicted killers, fighting the guilt that they didn't know what was happening with their husbands, band together to search for a killer. Continuing the trend of stories of brave women who aren't taken seriously, this tightly woven crime novel has a bang of an ending.

—Kimberly McGee, Lake Travis Community Library, Austin TX
NoveList read-alike: Good Husbands by Cate Ray

Two Kinds of Stranger
Steve Cavanagh
(Atria)

Conman-turned-attorney Eddie’s reputation precedes him. When Elly, a TikTok star, is convicted of a double murder she didn’t commit, she requests his help to prove her innocence. He soon realizes he may have gotten more than he bargained for. When the case hits a little too closento home, Eddie relies on his (maybe not so legal) skills to save her life.

—Jessica Heatherly, Kingston Public Library, TN
NoveList read-alike: Jack Swyteck series by Michael Grippando

This Story Might Save Your Life
Tiffany Crum
(Flatiron Books: Pine & Cedar)

Joy and Benny are the perfect podcasting team, best friends who explain to listeners how to survive life-threatening situations. But when Joy and her husband go missing, it’s time for long-held secrets to be
revealed. This compelling mystery with a likable pair at its heart will keep readers turning the pages to find out if a happy ending awaits.

—Mara Bandy Fass, Champaign Public Library, IL
NoveList read-alike: Listen for the Lie by Amy Tintera

Lady Tremaine
Rachel Hochhauser
(St. Martin's Press)

This Cinderella retelling is particularly powerful at portraying the challenges of motherhood and surviving in the world as a woman. The dissection of what traumas and choices create a villain are a fascinating character study, and readers will love that Lady Tremaine is given depth beyond the stereotypical evil stepmother trope—after all, everyone could be a villain in someone else's story.

—Kara Seal, Arapahoe Libraries, CO
NoveList read-alike: Malice by Heather Walter

It Girl: A Novel
Allison Pataki
(Ballantine Books)

A compelling fictionalized story based on the life of Gibson Girl and Gilded Age "It Girl," Evelyn Nesbit. The author writes masterful historical fiction that illuminates exceptional women: their lives, their hopes, their triumphs and downfalls. Highly recommended!

—Karen Troutman, LibraryReads Ambassador, IN
NoveList read-alike: Laura Lamont’ s Life in Pictures by Emma Straub

Innamorata
Ava Reid
(Del Rey)

Haunting and atmospheric, this gothic tale of necromancy, revenge, and forbidden love will draw readers in. Lush writing, eerie vibes, and a heroine torn between duty and desire. Darkly beautiful.

—Emily Snodgrass, Rogers Public Library, AR
NoveList read-alike: The Bone Orchard by Sarah A. Mueller

Lake Effect: A Novel
Cynthia D'Aprix Sweeney
(Ecco)

In 1977, Nina and Finn begin an affair and make difficult choices that will ripple through their families and small community for years to come. Twenty-five years later, Nina’s eldest daughter makes a selfish choice that sends shock waves from Manhattan back to Rochester. Keenly and sensitively written, readers will have great compassion for these women despite their choices.

—Jennifer Winberry, Hunterdon County Library, NJ
NoveList read-alike: Commonweal thby Ann Patchett

You Should Have Been Nicer to My Mom 
Vincent Tirado
(William Morrow)

This slow, luxuriously paced gothic hinges on toxic family relationships. When Papi Ramon dies, the reading of the will mentions a demon among the family. Fans of Knives Out or The House of Usher will want to give this one a try!

—Adam Lopez, Lawrence Public Library, KS
NoveList read-alike: They Drown Our Daughters by Katrina Monroe

Nobody's Baby
Olivia Waite
(Tordotcom)

Our favorite "old lady" sci-fi detective is back at it, this time solving the mystery of a new baby on board (when that should be impossible on many levels!). A quick read, but Waite does a great job balancing a heck of a lot of world-building with a satisfying mystery and forward emotional movement by the heroine.

—Casey Chwiecko, Lincoln Public Library, MA
NoveList read-alike: The Investigations of Mossa and Pleiti series by Malka Older

Board Bonus picks:

Seasons of Gl Seasons of Gl ass and Ir ass and Ir on: Stories on: Stories

Amal El-Mohtar

(Tordotcom)

Notable Nonfiction: 

The Beginning Comes After the End: Notes on the End: Notes on a World of Change
Rebecca Solnit
(Haymarket Books)

See our social media for annotations of the bonus picks

Click here to see the entire Hall of Fame

The LibraryReads Hall of Fame designation honors authors who have had multiple titles appear on the monthly LibraryReads list since 2013. When their third title places on the list via library staff votes, the author moves into the Hall of Fame. Click here to see the Hall of Fame authors organized in alpha order. Please note, the current year's Hall of Fame lists are pulled out at the top of the page.

Ilona Andrews
This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me
(Tor Books)

Marie Benedict
Daughter of Egypt
(St. Martin's Press)

Elizabeth Berg
Life: A Love Story: A Novel
(Random House)

Tana French
The Keeper: A Novel
(Viking)

Talia Hibbert
A Girl Like Her
(Sourcebooks Casablanca)

Joshilyn Jackson
Missing Sister
(William Morrow)

Abby Jimenez
The Night We Met
(Forever)

T. Kingfisher
Wolf Worm
(Tor Nightfire)

Jenny Lawsom
How to Be Okay When Nothing Is Okay: Tips and Tricks That Kept Me Alive, Happy, and Creative in Spite of Myself
(Penguin Life)

Freida McFadden
Want to Know a Secret?
(Poisoned Pen Press)

Deanna Raybourn
A Ghastly Catastrophe
(Berkley Mystery)

Cat Sebastian
Star Shipped
(Tor Books)

Rebecca Searle
Once and Again
(Atria)

Benjamin Stevenson
Everyone in This Bank Is a Thief
(Mariner Books)

2026 Summer Scares Title Announcement

 

In celebration of National Library Lover’s Day and Friday the 13th, the Horror Writers Association (HWA), in partnership with Booklist, Book Riot, iREAD, and NoveList®, a division of EBSCO Information Services (EBSCO), is delighted to announce the eighth annual Summer Scares reading list, which includes titles selected by a panel of authors and library workers and is designed to promote Horror as a great reading option for all ages, during any time of the year.

This year, Summer Scares welcomes New York Times Bestselling author Jennifer McMahon as the 2026 spokesperson:

"We need horror now more than ever. Stories to unsettle us, to make us question what we think we know, to show us how to confront the darkness and come out the other side,” said McMahon. “Stories that we will put down and feel changed by. This collection of books chosen by the Summer Scares committee perfectly showcases the true diversity of horror today, and is more evidence that we are at the peak of a horror renaissance. These are books to get lost in, books to share with others in your life, books to talk about and ponder over. So come along, take my hand and prepare to step into the darkness with me this summer. Yes, there’s plenty of scary stuff in these books. But there’s also a whole lot of hope. Oh, and don’t close your eyes — you don’t want to miss a thing along the way."

Every year, three titles are selected in each of three categories: Adult, Young Adult, and Middle Grade. For 2026 those selected titles are:

Adult Selections:

A Botanical Daughter, by Noah Medlock (Titan, 2024) 

Never Whistle at Night, ed. Shane Hawk & Theodore C. Van Alst (Vintage, 2023)

Maeve Fly, by CJ Leede (Tor Nightfire, 2023)

Young Adult Selections:

What We Harvest, by Ann Fraistat (Delacorte Press, 2022) 

Gorgeous Gruesome Faces, by Linda Cheng (Roaring Brook Press, 2023) 

Our Shadows Have Claws, ed. Yamile Saied Méndez & Amparo Ortiz (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2022)  

Middle Grade Selections:

Garlic and the Vampire, by Bree Paulsen (Harper, 2021) 

It Came from the Trees, by Ally Russell (Delacorte Press, 2023)  

This Appearing House, by Ally Malinenko (Harper, 2022)

Summer Scares aims to introduce Horror titles to school and public library workers so they can start conversations with readers that extend beyond the books on each list and promote reading for years to come. In addition to the annual list of recommended titles, the Summer Scares Programming Guide—free for any library to access—is back with the tools libraries need to connect with their patrons. 

“The 2026 guide, developed and designed by the HWA Libraries team, is the library worker’s roadmap to providing exciting and meaningful experiences for their communities through Summer Scares, whether they’re putting up book displays, leading discussion groups, developing events, or orchestrating an entire Summer Scares program series,” states Konrad Stump, co-creator of the programming guide. “With select titles aligned with iREAD’s 2026 theme (Plant a Seed, Read), the guide makes it easy for libraries across the world to incorporate Summer Scares into their summer reading programs and engage patrons of all ages in the horror genre.”

The guide will be available beginning March 1, 2026 on the Summer Scares Resource page at http://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/p/summer-scares.html

Along with the guide, the Summer Scares committee will work with both the recommended list authors and Horror authors from all over the country to provide free programming to libraries. Any library looking to host horror-themed events anytime of year is encouraged to email libraries@horror.org to get started.

Booklist is helping to kick off Summer Scares 2026 in March with a series of three free webinars with this year’s featured authors in conversation with committee members:

• Thursday, March 12, 2026, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Middle-Grade authors and moderated by Julia Smith. Click here to register.
• Monday, March 23, 2026, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Young Adult authors and moderated by Kelly Jensen. Click here to register.
• Thursday, March 26, 2026, at 2pm Eastern, featuring our Adult authors and moderated by Jennifer McMahon. Click here to register.

Each webinar lasts one hour. Anyone may register to participate for free at https://www.booklistonline.com/webinars. Recordings will be available for on demand viewing after the live events at https://www.booklistonline.com/webinars-archive.

All are welcome to join the Summer Scares committee and featured authors at the HWA’s Librarians’ Day, taking place in person on Friday, June 5, 2026 in Pittsburg, PA as part of StokerConⓇ. Please visit https://www.stokercon.com/ for more information.

The HWA is a non-profit organization of writers and publishing professionals and the oldest organization dedicated to the Horror/Dark Fiction genre. One of the HWA’s missions is to foster an appreciation of reading through extensive programming and partnerships with libraries, schools, and literacy-based organizations.

The 2026 Summer Scares program committee consists of author Jennifer McMahon, HWA Library Committee Co-Chairs Becky Spratford and Konrad Stump, as well as academic library director and ILA President Carolyn Ciesla, Book Riot Senior Editor and YA specialist Kelly Jensen, Booklist Senior Editor and Middle Grade specialist Julia Smith, and Manager of Reader Content and Services at NoveList Yaika Sabat.

For more information about the Summer Scares reading program, including committee member bios and how to obtain promotional materials and schedule events with the authors/committee members, please visit the Summer Scares Resource Page (http://raforallhorror.blogspot.com/p/summer-scares.html) or email HWA Library Committee Co-Chairs Becky Spratford and Konrad Stump at libraries at horror dot org.

Please click here for access to our free folder of graphics including title collages courtesy of Kelly Jensen.

Click on the image to access the
Summer Scares 2026 Graphics folder

E-Book/Audiobook Advocacy Tools via RAILS and Becky's Reminder That Our History of Bad Communication Is to Blame

My home library system, Reaching Across Illinois Library System (RAILS), has created a set of advocacy tools that clearly explain the breadth of the pricing problem on eBook and eAudio books for libraries, and take the conversation directly to our patrons.

They have also made it all customizable for you to use for your library and have provided ALT text for all images. I am sharing their communication on the information and how to use it below. You now have no excuse to not participate in this important advocacy.

As multiple states are trying to fight the publishers and make it illegal to keep price gouging us, we need to get the word out to our patrons so that they are also discussing this with their legislatures. Remember, these are their tax dollars and most people have no idea how much we have to pay to get them their books. There are still people, regular library users, who are shocked when I tell them how much we have to pay for eBooks and eAudio books. Then they are further shocked when they find out we pay that and don't even own the books. And while we think it sounds ridiculous I need you all to understand that many people are under the impression that we buy a books once and then have access to it in every format. And that number of people is statistically relevant.

Here is the bigger problem though-- all of this misunderstanding is ON US. As I have written about before, we are terrible at communicating what we do and how nuanced, hard, and expensive it actually is.

We make excuses as to why we don't communicate better. I write about it in that post. But, as I also write in that post, all this does is hurt us more (see the librarians as groomers issue for proof).

We are hitting the tipping point on the eBook, eAudio issue. Making the legislative switch to focusing on the unfairness of the contracts the publisher make with us (over the previously struck down copyright arguments) is starting to work. But now we need constituents to reach out to their legislators without us as the middle-people. 

The RAILS advocacy tools are a way for us to CLEARLY explain to our patrons why they should be outraged at how expensive it is for us to buy their books in the formats they want-- again with their tax dollars. And thanks to RAILS, you can easily access those tools here (and below) is the landing page for the information including the link to download a canvas template which you can customize, including Alt text for all graphics.

Get this information out in your newsletters, on social media, to your friends and supporters groups. All you need is a small percentage of the people you reach with these communications to make the next step and call or email their representatives for us to move the needle forward and stop the price gouging.

Full disclosure, I spent 3 years on the RAILS Board. This means I understand how much work they have put into these. It started back when I was on the board. You can trust them and their resources. Also the fact that they did all this work and are sharing it, far and wide, with anyone who needs it, well, that is even better.

Click here or see below.

RAILS Releases New E-Book/Audiobook Advocacy Tools

RAILS is excited to launch a new set of advocacy tools for libraries to build awareness about the challenges of e-book and audiobook pricing. These documents include an advocacy flyer, sample social media graphics, and sample copy that libraries can use to make their communities aware of this growing problem.  

The original version of the flyer was shared at the 2025 ILA Legislative Meetups. This document is perfect for sharing with public library boards, community members, and legislators.  

The downloadable social media carousel graphics can be shared across all platforms. Libraries are welcome to download the Canva template to add their logo in the lower left corner. RAILS has provided alt text for these graphics. 

There is also sample copy available to accompany the social media graphics. This copy can also be used in newsletters, blogs, or press releases. We encourage libraries to utilize these messages wherever appropriate.  

Working together, libraries have the opportunity to make their voices heard on this issue. By sharing these messages with our communities, we can build a greater understanding of the need for fair access to e-books and audiobooks.  

For more information about this issue, please see the RAILS E-Resource Access Pulse page.  

Becky's Annual Year in Review Program is Today and Here Are the Slides/Resources for All

I have mentioned it a few times, especially toward the end of 2025, but each year I create a brand new program to debut in February where I compile all of the year end data, sift through it, and present it in a 60 minute program where I make some large pronouncements about the year we just lived through and help us move into the next year with educated guess predictions.

This program takes months to compile. Grabbing all of the year end reports is the easy part. It is figuring out how to narrow down the glut of information that comes at us at the end of the year to find the pieces that are most pertinent to all of us and then assess what they are saying when taken all together, that is where the work is. 

I have done this for over 10 years now, on different platforms. This year it is through PCI. Many library systems and state libraries offer access to their programs live and archived. It will have a very wide reach and for that I am happy.

This is also a program that I allow those I present for to keep up indefinitely. (Normally I require my presentations be taken down a year after the live event.)

Why?

Because it is when you can view a few years of these programs in a row that you can watch trends emerge and see how the situation we find ourselves in at the present came to be. Nothing looks like it "came out of nowhere" when you take the time to look back each year.

I love taking a moment with all of you, a few weeks into a new year, to look back together,

While I am paid to give this program every year, I would do this work for myself-- and all of you-- even without a presentation event. And that is also why I make sure that the slides are very text and link heavy-- so that the information for all of you is here and free. It is all too important to not get out to as many people as possible.

If you are attending the program, please note, I had to send in the PDF of the slides 2 weeks ago, but if you use this link to the live slides, you will get the fully updated version.

Click the image to access the slides

Using Awards Lists As a RA Tool: PEN/Faulkner Foundation Awards for Fiction and Debuts Longlist

This is part of my ongoing series on using Awards Lists as a RA tool. Click here for all posts in the series in reverse chronological order. Click here for the first post which outlines the details how to use awards lists as a RA tool.  

Last week, the PEN/Faulkner Foundation announced the longlists for their prestigious fiction and debut awards. From the about page for the award:

The PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction honors the best published works of fiction by American permanent residents in a calendar year. Three writers are chosen annually by the Board of Directors of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation to serve as judges, ensuring that our awards selection process is free of commercial influence. These judges select an initial longlist of ten books, followed by five finalists, and finally one winner as the “first among equals.” The author of the winning book receives a $15,000 prize. The authors of each of the other finalists receive $5,000. The Award is presented at an annual celebration of the year’s distinguished books and authors. This exquisite literary evening features introductions by the PEN/Faulkner Award judges, original presentations by the year’s PEN/Faulkner Award winner and four finalists, and a star-studded list of notable guests, including our PEN/Faulkner Literary Champion.

This year's longlist includes the following titles:

• Dominion by Addie E. Citchens (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
• King of Ashes by S.A. Cosby (Flatiron Books)
• Brother Brontë by Fernando A. Flores (MCD)
• The Devil Is a Southpaw by Brandon Hobson (Ecco)
• The White Hot by Quiara Alegría Hudes (One World)
• The Sisters by Jonas Hassen Khemiri (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
• Heart the Lover by Lily King (Grove Press)
• Make Your Way Home by Carrie R. Moore (Tin House)
• An Oral History of Atlantis by Ed Park (Random House)
• Small Scale Sinners by Mahreen Sohail (A Public Space Books)

To see the full announcement including information on this year's judges, click here. 

The breadth of titles being considered is among the best in literary fiction on this list is refreshing. We have literary titles, popular bestselling ones, and some I have not heard of. SA Cosby and Lily King are among our most popular authors. This list is not a snotty literary list for only a small slice of your readers. It is for everyone who enjoys a good read.

This inclusion of lesser known authors is important because this is not an award that exists in an isolated ivory tower. Go to the landing page for the awards and scroll below the information about the current 2025  award and take a look at the books and authors that have been long listed and honored in the past. Backlist access is super easy. Almost all are books and authors you know about...now.

Speaking of the lesser known titles, along with the fiction list, they also released the longlist of books being considered for the 2026 PEN/Hemingway Award for Debut Novel:

• Trip by Amie Barrodale (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)
• We Pretty Pieces of Flesh by Colwill Brown (Henry Holt)
• The Correspondent by Virginia Evans (Crown)
• The Devil Three Times by Rickey Fayne (Little, Brown)
• Awake in the Floating City by Susanna Kwan (Pantheon)
• North Sun by Ethan Rutherford (Deep Vellum)
• Blob by Maggie Su (Harper)
• Maggie; Or, a Man and a Woman Walk Into a Bar by Katie Yee (Summit Books)

At the very least, take make sure all of these titles are in your collections. And find ways to get them into the hands of readers, especially the lesser known titles. 

And again, please remember that these titles are NOT just for your literary fiction fans. SA Cosby and Lily King are very popular with a wide swath of readers.

All of these titles on the current list or past lists are also excellent book discussion choices.

Finally, you can click here to learn more about the PEN/Faulkner Foundation's education programs. They will work with you to bring authors to your school or library. Yet another reason to know about this resource.